Returning the Favor
by Yamadori
Summary: Blue Dragon Game. Spoilers for Disc 3. Oneshot. “Well, you know... You’re always doing something nice for us, so I thought I’d do something nice for you...” Shu x Sahlia, mention of one-sided Jiro x Kluke


**Well, it took me longer than I would've liked, but I finally got this thing up. I think this is because... well...**

**I FINALLY SAW THE END OF BLUE DRAGON!!! :D**

**Yep! It took me a long time, but I finally saw the end! And it seemed to fit just right. ;) Of course, the alternate ending in **_**Blue Dragon, Birthday!**_** (which I highly recommend that you read it if you've seen the end of the game, and you like Jiro x Kluke) is just as good, if not better. Anyway... Shu x Sahlia is basically my favorite pairing of the Blue Dragon game - though it often ties for my favorite with Jiro x Kluke - so I thought I might as well make a oneshot for the two of them. Well... There's nothing else to really mention. Since this is a oneshot, there are no review replies like in my other stories - I'll have more to say about that at the note at the end, though - so we can get on with the story now. :) **

Shu tried to keep his eyes trained forward as he piloted the mechat, trying to ignore Marumaro's pestering questions of why they were going back to Devour Village.

Honestly, he'd wanted to see her again. Like she'd said herself, she respected him.

He loved Kluke and Jiro like they were related, but that was also part of the problem; they were always looking after him like he was a baby. They never sat down and talked to him, _really_ talked to him.

He also occasionally thought of Marumaro like a brother, though he'd never admit it. But no one, not even Zola, could really carry out a conversation with the Devee. Not without something to treat a headache.

And Zola... Shu thought she was cool, but he knew that he'd never feel like her peer until a few years from now. Certainly not to talk to her.

But _she_ both talked and listened. And she... well, she respected him.

So, that was why he was going to Devour Village, present in tow.

"Why are we going there? Maro thinks your going because of the cookie girl!"

Yep, to Devour Village, present in tow. He just wished Marumaro would shut up.

* * *

Sahlia wiped her brow, smiling down at her work. She'd held off on using the ingredients until they left; there had been some new things she wanted to try with the recipe. And, so far, it seemed like a success. She couldn't wait to show him.

She slid the cookie sheet into the oven and left it to bake. To pass the time, she went to the next room and read.

About 15 minutes later, she pulled them out of the oven. Once they had cooled a little, she found a bag to wrap them in.

Satisfied, she decided to take a little walk. This was the boring part; waiting for him to visit again.

Still, upon seeing the blue sky, she could've skipped. It was nice, to go outside and not see a gray sky. Or an evil tree.

Ever since he'd stopped her from jumping off the cliff and gotten rid of the Eat-Yeet, she'd felt so alive; she hadn't been so full of life since before her family was killed, and that might not even compare to how she felt now. It was like she'd been freed from the bonds that held her.

She was snapped out of her musings when she heard a strange, yet familiar, sound. Looking up, she saw the blue and yellow object flying towards the village.

The children ran towards the village entrance when the ship landed just outside Devour Village. Sahlia walked, but she felt like running right alongside them.

But she was surprised when Shu was the only one to disembark. She could see the others watching him go, but no one followed him.

He approached the village, dragging his feet along the ground; the dust could be seen from where she stood. A moment later, he was in front of her. He raised his eyes to meet her eyes, a little... shy? "Hi, Sahlia."

"Hi, Shu." Well, this was a bit odd. Not the greeting... No, they said hello to each other every time they met. But the _shyness_... Shu wasn't shy, not about anything. So what was flustering him?

"I, uh..." he kicked the ground awkwardly. "Oh!" he reached into his pocket, pulling out a bag, offering it to her. "I brought you some more Zephyr Chocolate and Radiant Flour."

"Thank you," she took it from him. "Actually, you came just in time. I had something to show you..." she took the bag that was tied onto her sash. "I tried something a little different with the cookie recipe."

"Really?" he opened it, looking inside. Instead of being beige, they were brown - chocolate cookies. He smiled. "Looks good."

She giggled. "I thought you might like it."

"I'll try some later," he tucked it into his front pocket. "But, Sahlia... Well... I..." he sighed in an annoyed tone, frustrated that he couldn't say what he wanted to.

Humor filled her voice as she said, "Take your time. You can tell me whatever you want to."

_I know; that's why I'm here._ Shu cleared his throat. "I know that I'm here earlier than usual, but I had something I wanted to give you."

"Oh?" her eyes widened a little. "What is-"

"Here, Sahlia!" Eye tightly closed, from behind his back, he took out a wrapped bundle and thrust it in front of her. As she took it from him, he added, "You can open it now, if you want."

"Okay." she nodded, than unwrapped it. Once the soft, olive green cloth had been removed, she saw that it was a roll of darkened bread.

"I-I know it looks kind of burned, but it's supposed to be like that," he swallowed. "In Talta Village, we make that bread during festival times. You have it to celebrate happiness."

"You made it?" It wasn't a mocking question, for which he was grateful, since Kluke and Marumaro _had_ teased him about cooking. But Sahlia was only curious.

"Yeah. W-well... my Grandpa helped me. I-it's not that I don't know how to make it," he said quickly, feeling his face heat up a bit when her smile widened. "The two of us always make it together, so I didn't want to break tradition or anything."

"I see. Is it alright if I try it?"

"Yeah, please!" His face getting redder, he said more quietly, "I think you'll like it."

She broke off a piece of it, then brought her hand to her mouth. When it was inside, she grabbed her cheek at the taste.

It was... delicious. To her, at least. The outside actually had herbs on it, which had cooked into it. The crust was crunchy, but not too hard. The inside of it was soft, a bit chewy, and some of the herb flavoring had cooked into this as well.

"Shu... it's excellent. It reminds me of the kind of things my mom used to make," There was a hint of longing in both her voice and her heart, but she pushed it down. "I can't thank you enough."

Shu, who was still blushing, kicked at the ground, embarrassed. "Well, you know... You're always doing something nice for us, so I thought I'd do something nice for you..."

Sahlia put a finger to her chin, grinning. "I guess I'll have to find something as equally nice as this bread, then."

"No, no, no!" he shook his head. "You don't have to do that. The cookies are enough." _They actually saved my life a few times, so it's more than enough._

"Well... That's just _your_ opinion," she stepped up to him, moving closer and closer, so close that their faces were only inches apart. "But I think that something as nice as this bread deserves something nicer than a cookie."

Shu backed away slightly, even though Sahlia just moved near him again. "Wh-what do you...?"

Before he could do anything else, she had pressed her lips against his cheek. At first, he thought it was just a quick peck, like his mother used to give him on his forehead when he was little. But Sahlia's kiss lasted a few moments longer than that.

As she broke away, she ran back towards her house. She looked over her shoulder, waving as she said, "Thanks for the bread, Shu!"

He stood there, holding his cheek, a little stunned as it hit him. Jiro's parents... they kissed each other on the cheek like that.

"Maro knew it!" he heard Marumaro yell from the mechat. "Maro knew you came to see the cookie girl!"

As Shu chased Marumaro around a few seconds later, Zola commented, "I thought she was going to kiss him on the mouth."

Kluke snorted. "So much for 'respecting' him."

Jiro sighed, glancing at Kluke. _Maybe... Maybe one day... I'll get to do that, too..._

**And that's the end! :D I hadn't really been sure how to end it, so I thought I might as well throw in a tiny line of Jiro x Kluke. ;) This was supposed to be strictly Shu x Sahlia, but one-sided Jiro x Kluke is canon (though it's technically a triangle), so I won't worry about it. Anyway, I don't know how good it was, but feel free to drop a review. Oh, and you can ask me stuff in your review, too, because I finally figured out how to use the "Review Reply" button. ;) Thanks for reading!**


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